Invisalign Approves Of My Snackiness.

I could talk about my love for Invisalign until the cows come home and am thrilled to write this sponsored post for them. That said- all thoughts and opinions and AWESOME TEETH are my own.

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In honor of National Smile Week (check out Invisalign's Facebook page for some super cute images celebrating this holiday!), I thought I'd share a few more stories about how my smile actually came to be. I know I've blogged before about my childhood rabbit teeth and how flippin' awful grade-schoolers can be, but only a few of you know about my incredibly special first round with braces.

In 5th grade- shortly after the public teeth-shaming debacle, surprise, surprise- I went into "traditional" metal braces. And I'm not gonna lie; I thought that the ability to color-coordinate my brackets to holidays or favorite hues was wicked amazing.

But the sharp, pokey parts jutting into my lips and cheeks, the abundance of wax I accidentally swallowed, and the necessity for nerdtacular headgear were things I could've done without. And that previously mentioned latex allergy? Yeah, that sorta kiboshed the whole affair a tad early.

It was just as well. Turns out, if you tell 10 year-old Me that she cannot have popcorn, gum, hard candy, carrots, or anything remotely sticky? It becomes positively obvious that I cannot live without popcorn, gum, hard candy, carrots or anything remotely sticky. How're you gonna keep me from my carrots dipped in caramels (something I've just at this moment made up)?

So yes. It didn't "take." And even though a major impetus in the choosing of Invisalign a decade later was to look good for my camera-friendly career (and the boyfriend whom I knew was The One), I also didn't feel like saying sayonara to cheddar popcorn or strawberry gum for the next little while.

The guy for whom I underwent the Invisaligns, back in our dating years.
Also, I'm wearing my aligners in this very picture!

Besides, anyone who's seen P.J. knows that popcorn plays a major culinary role in all of his relationship snacking. It's true.

And another plus of the whole process? The realization that I had never before in my life taken better care of my teeth than while undergoing Invisalign treatment. Every single time I'd remover my aligner trays to eat some corn on the cob, I'd actually floss my teeth before putting the aligners back in. Floss, people. That's some toothly TLC right there. And for each frozen Charleston Chew I'd demolish (I never purported to be a macrobiotic vegan here, people), I'd do the whole dental care routine: you know, the one you normally reserve for two days before your dental checkup?

More pluses: Orthodontic visits were generally once every 6 weeks, the cost was roughly the same as metal braces, and the treatment on a whole took less time than my run with metal braces.

Worldwide, there are more than 2 million Invisalign cases- wanna check out if this innovative treatment is right for you (or your own rabbit-toothed preteen)? Invisalign braces are approved for all sorts of crazy teeth issues, such as overcrowding, under and overbites, widely spaced teeth, and even sometimes cases with a special blend of dentally improbable mouth issues. (Ahem.)

Go get pretty teeth. Don't disrupt your life while doing so.

And pass the popcorn, yeah?

This was a sponsored post on behalf of Invisalign. But I wasn't kidding about the popcorn. 

Cape Cod, AKA What Blog Addiction?

Yeah. So. I know I said I'd seeya all in a week...but I just love these pix and think they're the wundiest. (I've taken over 400 so far. So that's saying something.)

Taken moments before Susannah walked directly out into the ocean, wearing all of her clothes.

Dad/Uncle Peej does storytime. (Who's the wiggleworm on the far left?)

Nora loves Baby Garrett. LOVES. So much. A lot.

Cheer up, Zu.

Try some, Zu.

Sitting in a cove with one of my favorite little mermaids.

Okay, no. Now for real. See you later.

On The Road Again.

Seeya next week, kids.

Love, 

The Planner, The Snacker, The Reader & The Singer 

Green Giant's Veggie Snack Chips Are My Go To. If My Fam Leaves Me Some.

I love snacks. I love snacks. I think Snacks should be their own mealtime: Breakfast, Snacks, Brunch, Snacks, Lunch, Snacks, Dinner, Snacks...(and then a tapas-style Snacks before bed.)

People who stop snacking after 8pm: I do not understand you.

Folks who don't experience 2pm/4pm/11pm hunger pangs: I do not understand you.

But I am understood (and heard loud n' clear) by Green Giant, especially with their new superstellar line of Veggie Snack Chips. They know that I want something delicious and different and yeah- even something made with real vegetables from time to time.

This past weekend I was lucky enough to try the new Roasted Veggie Tortilla Chip (Garden Ranch) and the Multigrain Sweet Potato Chip (Barbecue)- and the friends with whom I grilled out were all-too happy to weigh in on their favorite. We started with the Garden Ranch chips (like our snacking was a wine flight or something), and they went over well, especially with my little girls. I could easily see these becoming a Mom's Purse staple (what, you don't do that, too?), and I think they'd be pretty spectacular with hummus. However, the loud n' clear winner was the next course, the Barbecue-flavored sweet potato chips. As in, my pals liked them so much that I was barely able to try one. (Vultures, all.) But from full mouths, a few chip crumbs, and a practically decimated bag, I pieced together that they would've liked to have had some more. (For testing purposes, obviously.)

Nora was, unsurprisingly enough, quite willing to be a Snack Tester for both varieties...but I didn't trust her with the whole bag. (I know her kind. I am her kind.) Her glowing, verbose review?

"Yums."

I call this one Little Kid, Gigantic Bowl, No Chips For Mom.

These refreshing snackaroos from Green Giant are light, flavorful, and make a wicked nice addition to a weekend bbq.

If they last that long.

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.